What If?
by LostMyMind26
Summary: What if? What if something didn’t happen? What if I did something this way instead? What if? This is a question people ask often. Well my question is, what if Itachi hadn’t killed his family? How would Sasuke, and everything around him be different?


**Hey guys! It's Lost again! This is my second fanfic and i hope you like. Unlike my first one which was pretty much all crack comedy, i tried to make this one a heart-warming story.**

**Ever since i started watching Naruto, I've always wondered what would have happened if Itachi hadn't killed his family. (There'd be much less plot, i know. But whatever...)**

**This all takes place extremly early in the series. Like the first few episodes i guess. Except for the whole, the Uchihas aren't dead thing. **

**Here's my take on what would happen if the Uchiha's were still alive. Hope you like!**

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A young raven-haired boy ran quickly through the town. He had a big smile on his face as he raced toward his home. He turned the corner, darting past people as he did. Finally he slid open his door and entered, bumping into a figure, causing him to fall. He rubbed his head and apologized as he looked up to see who he ran into.

"Father!" he exclaimed at the scowling male.

"Afternoon son," he replied before walking toward the kitchen. Sasuke followed, running up to his mother and giving her a hug.

"Sasuke!" she greeted him, "You seem excited today."

The boy nodded and handed her a sheet of paper.

"Father, mother, I ranked top of the class in the latest exam. My kunai throwing is the best in the class too!" he shouted.

"That's great dear," said his mother with a smile. She gave him a hug for his effort.

Sasuke turned to his father to see the man's reaction. His facial expression stayed as cold as it had been before. The tall man stood up and began to exit the room, passing Sasuke on the way. As he crossed his son's path, he placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.

"Good job," he said and left the room. Sasuke could still feel the warmth of where his father touched him. He had complimented him. He smiled and ran out of the room to spread the news to his brother as well.

Soon the family sat down to dinner together. Sasuke told his family the details of the test. He kept his eyes on his father, waiting for a reaction. What Sasuke wanted more than anything was his father's acceptance. Itachi had excelled in everything he did on a level beyond that of others. He was proud of his brother but envied him at the same time. He was obviously their father's pride and joy. Itachi's achievements led the head Uchiha to expect more of Sasuke than he could do. The boy could tell in his father's eyes that he always questioned why his younger son wasn't more like the oldest. Sasuke tried his best to gain acceptance to the point where everyone else but his father noticed how talented he was. It wasn't enough for his father. Sasuke wasn't as talented as Itachi so it wasn't good enough.

As the Uchihas dug into their lovingly cooked meal, a boy of Sasuke's age was sitting alone, slurping noodles out of a bowl.

"Hey old man! Get me another ramen!" said a familiar blonde, holding out his empty bowl.

"Right away Naruto," said the man and got to cooking. This was his third finished bowl that night, nothing uncommon for him. Teuchi, the owner Ichiraku Ramen, sold the young boy ramen almost every night. He watched the lad enter on his own and leave on his own. Only on some occasions he'd be treated by his teacher, Iruka. But other than that, Teuchi knew he was a loner. Everyone in the village knew the story of the poor boy and although pitied him, feared him. Even the children, whose parents were forbidden to pass on the secret, avoided the boy who held the demon fox spirit within him. The kids did not know of this, but followed their parents' leads and left him alone, only speaking to him in a taunting manner. He was an outcast. A troublemaker. No one wanted him and it seemed no one ever would.

The two boys, one at a warm dinner table, the other at a crowded restaurant, had something in common. They were both training to be ninjas.

"Settle down, it's time for the lesson," Iruka-sensei shouted over the rowdy kids. They soon quieted down and took their seats, but not before one threw a crumpled piece of paper at Naruto's head. The boy felt the back of his head where the paper had landed and glared at the child who threw it. This was a normal activity. The children in the class and Naruto…didn't exactly get along. Many of them found him a nuisance, and the others, not wanting to be taunted as well, didn't step in to help.

The lesson went by fast, students took notes, making sure they understood everything they needed for the next test. Sasuke's notes were impeccable. Most of the stuff they learned was hands-on so on the occasions that note taking was necessary; he knew he had to do a good job. He couldn't risk his status lowering even a bit. And Naruto? He fell asleep soon after the lesson begun and only stirred at the very end, his cheek stuck to the desk by his own drool.

"Naruto, you're so stupid! No wonder you failed the last exam!" laughed Sakura. A few others chucked as well.

"Shut up!" he retorted, grinding his teeth together. His face was bright red with embarrassment. He had always liked Sakura, thought she was pretty, but she always treated him like garbage. He looked down, willing himself to stay strong as some other kids made their usual jokes.

"What kind of colour is orange anyway?" sniggered Ino. Naruto looked up once again to glare at the blonde. He looked around the room for any support. Almost everywhere he looked people were laughing at him. There were only a select few who were not. His eyes passed Hinata, whose face was red, gazing at the floor. She had a troubled expression on her face. He wondered if she was sick. His focus passed to Chouji who was too busy stuffing his face with chips to pay attention to the laughter. Shikamaru sat next to him, staring into space. Making fun of someone was too troublesome for him. At last his eyes landed on Sasuke, the only other person in the room yet to make a joke. The two boys made eye contact, but Sasuke looked away as fast as he could and left the room. Although he didn't see what exactly was wrong with the boy, except his slacker tendencies, he couldn't risk sticking up for him. Although he disliked his popularity and how the girls clung to him, he knew being an outcast like Naruto would just disappoint his father, that being one of Sasuke's biggest fears.

Sasuke walked down the hall of the school and exited through the back doors, which led to the kunai field. He spent the next few hours throwing kunais and shurikens to improve his already almost perfect aim. As Naruto exited the school, he noticed the brunette through the window and stared for a few minutes before continuing on. The focus the boy put in while throwing his weapons was almost breathtaking. Naruto was jealous of Sasuke. He was the best in the class and also the most popular. He also had a family that loved him. He had everything Naruto didn't. The blond sighed and continued out of the school and toward his empty home.

Weeks passed and nothing changed. Naruto slacked off and got made fun of, and Sasuke continued to strive for his father's acceptance. Their ninja exams were quickly approaching. There was only a month left until the day would come. The day when they would finally receive their headbands, be formed into groups, and start on their journey into ninja-hood.

Sasuke came home after a long day of school. The sun low in the sky, but the town was still sunny. It was a great day for training for the ninja exams. The boy ran into his house, straight past his parents, into his brother's room.

"Itachi ni-san, let's go train!" he said as he stepped into the room. He closed his mouth and his eyes widened as he saw what his brother was doing.

"W-what is this?" he asked, looking at his brother in his ANBU uniform, packing a small bundle.

"Sasuke," Itachi said, acknowledging him, "I have an ANBU mission starting tomorrow. I need to get ready. Sorry."

"B-but you said you'd help be train for the ninja exams!" whined the raven-haired boy; something he rarely did in front of anyone else.

Itachi walked over to his brother and lifted his hand. He placed two fingers on Sasuke's forehead, something he did since childhood. Sasuke knew what was coming next.

"Sorry Sasuke," he said just as the boy expected, "Another time." Itachi walked past Sasuke, exiting the room.

"When will you be back?" asked the younger Uchiha, not turning around.

"Three months at least," replied his brother.

Sasuke turned to face him, "But my exam is next month!" he shouted.

"I'm sorry," he said once again and continued down the hall.

Sasuke, filled with anger and sadness, turned the other way and ran out of the house. This wasn't the first time Itachi said this and it wasn't going to be the last. Sasuke needed to be alone to thing. He jogged away from his home and down the street. He turned toward the hill and ran down it until he neared his desired location. The sky was painted orange by the setting sun by the time he reached his destination. The dock had been a place he went to whenever he was troubled. It was his place to be alone and just let himself loose. Whenever his father gave him the disappointed stare, whenever his brother broke a promise, he could always count on the comfort of the dock. As he trudged down the last hill, he noticed he was not alone. There was already someone seated at the edge of the dock. With the setting sun, he could only make out the silhouette of the person but could tell from the way their shoulders were shaking that they were crying. Maybe the person didn't want company, but curiosity took over. The brunette slowly hiked down the hill and stepped onto the dock. The person heard footsteps and turned around. Sasuke recognized the face instantly. Naruto. He could see the boy's tear-streaked face with ease. Upon recognition, Naruto started rubbing his face fiercely, trying to hide all hints of crying.

"What do you want?" the blonde tried to growl, but his voice cracked.

Sasuke walked toward the other male and took a seat next to him.

"Hey you all right?" he asked. He knew Naruto was always made fun of but he didn't know it took such a toll on him. Naruto just looked angry when people made jokes, not once had his face betrayed him to show the depression that was inside. From everyone's point of view, he was just a delinquent who liked to make trouble, not a boy who was just striving for attention and love.

"Why do you care?" said Naruto, trying but failing to keep his tears from falling.

"Because I do," the raven-haired boy simply replied, not knowing what else he could say.

Naruto said nothing and looked away, staring at the ocean. The orange and purple of the sky reflected on the ocean giving the waves that lapped the boys' feet an orange glow.

The two sat there saying nothing for a long time, until only the last hints of the sun were peeking out of the horizon.

"It's just…I-I get tired of it all, you know?" the blonde finally said.

Sasuke looked at Naruto, reading his face silently until all the sunlight was gone and Naruto's face barely visible. How could he not have noticed how much he was suffering before?

"It's a little embarrassing to admit," he said with an awkward chuckle, "But I've always envied you."

Sasuke's eyes widened, "You do?"

"Yeah. You're good at everything you do, and you have such a cool family."

"My life's not as great as you make it up to be," the brunette said with a sigh. Things may not be as bad for him as they seemed for Naruto, but they were far from perfect, "I spend my days in fear that I would disappoint my father. Since I'm not as good as Itachi, he acts as if I'm not good enough at all."

"I'd still want to have that over nothing," the blonde said, wiping a stray tear off his cheek. He'd been an orphan all his life, never even knowing who his parents were. He always felt so alone. As he walked the streets, he'd see happy families through the windows of houses he passed. How he wished he could switch places with the smiling kids he saw through the glass.

"It must be tough," Sasuke agreed.

The two boys continued to talk for a while. Sasuke started to understand a bit better what Naruto was really like. This made him wonder why everyone made fun of him. Before he just took it as a usual activity and sometimes even joined in when his mood was on the worse side.

Their conversation soon moved to the upcoming exam.

"There's no way I'd pass that," Naruto admitted, "I was asleep for many of the lessons, or just not paying attention. Haha."

"Well maybe we could train together some time," suggested Sasuke, "It'd be fun."

For once, Sasuke actually wanted a companion. He usually sat alone, focusing on his work. He felt a friend would bring him down. But now he saw different.

Naruto's smile extended from ear to ear, "Sure!" he said.

He was about to say more when a shout made both boys turn around.

"Naruto! There you are! I've been looking for you for hours!" growled an angry ninja. Even in the darkness of the night, Sasuke could see why the ninja was mad. In the moonlight, it was easy to see the pink paint covering most of the ninja's body.

"Your doing?" Sasuke asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Heh, yeah. Gotta run," said the blonde and sprinted off before he could get caught.

The raven-haired boy chuckled and got up. He hoped to sit like this with Naruto again soon.

Which is exactly what happened. Over the next month, the boys met almost every day. The second Sasuke finished his dinner, he'd run out of the house to the dock to meet with his friend. At school, the two paid no attention to each other knowing they'd hang out later anyway. They didn't only sit and chat, they also went to the forest and worked on what they needed to know for the exam. When motivated, Naruto was a fast learner and was able to pick up most of the moves Sasuke went over with him.

Soon the day of the exam arrived. The students rushed into the room early in the morning, chatting away.

"I'm so nervous!" one said to another.

"Don't worry!" the other replied, "I saw how you did the jutsu yesterday. It was flawless!"

"Aw, thanks!"

"How about me?"

"You'll do great!"

And so on.

Before long, one boy turned to Naruto, a sneer on his face.

"So Naruto, are _you_ ready for the exam?" he asked in mock interest.

"Yes actually," he replied, returning the glare.

The boy laughed, "Haha! Yeah right! Only a month ago you couldn't even clone yourself, and you say you're going to pass? Don't make me laugh!"

A few nearby students laughed in agreement.

The taunting continued until the whole class could hear.

"The day Naruto passes is the day I'm going to be Hokage!" spat a student.

Soon the taunting reached Sasuke's ears. Soon he couldn't take it anymore. He got up from his seat and trudged down the isle to the main pack of students. He pushed through a few people and wound up next to Naruto.

"All of you be quiet," he said looking at everyone. The group turned speechless. The Uchiha was protecting Naruto?! What kind of parallel universe was this?

"I happen to know that Naruto is going to pass because the two of us trained together for a while. Now stop your jokes and laughter or you'll really regret it," he snapped. His eyes moved from one side of the room to the other. Everyone stayed silent in shock. Some mouths were open, jaws to the floor. The raven-haired boy smirked, and turned to Naruto. The boy looked at him with a shocked expression as well. But at the same time, he could see a thankful look in his eyes. Sasuke gave the blonde a quick smile before heading back to his seat. The remaining kids stayed silent until the teacher arrived.

Later that day, all the students that passed received their ninja headbands. Naruto was one of them.

The next day, everyone sat in their old seats at the academy. This would be the last time they would be here. Today was the day they would be assigned their teams. This would be the day everyone separated and moved forward with their lives. Iruka-sensei started reading off the teams. Soon he reached the number seven.

"Team 7 is Uchiha, Sasuke; Haruno, Sakura; and Uzumaki Naruto."

The raven-haired boy ignored the gleeful screams of Sakura who was overjoyed to be on the same team as Sasuke, and locked eyes with his other new teammate.

"Friends," his eyes seemed to say.

"The Best." Naruto's seemed to reply.


End file.
